In an interview with Corina van der Spoel on RSG, Poland explained that she wanted to weave symbolism into her life story. As she grew up on a small holding where birds were always present and because they hold a spiritual meaning to her, Poland decided to use the birds’ observation of her and her observation of the birds in her narrative.

Also included in the book are beautiful illustrations of birds, drawn by Craig Ivor. He joined Van der Spoel and Poland to talk about the book and revealed that his favourite drawing is that of the wagtail.

(Please note that the interview starts about 28 minutes into the podcast. The interview is in English but the preceding programme is in Afrikaans.)